<VV> electrical problem - SOLVED!!!

[Frank DuVal]

Glad you found it.

No, the R stands for resistor bypass. It bypasses the ignition resistor 
while the starter in engaged to give higher output to the spark plugs.

No, this was not the reason for the 61 starter change. That has to do 
with the fresh hot air heater repacing the gasoline heater of the 1960 
model. The 60 has no ductwork behind the rear seat, so GM made the 
package area behind the rear seat very deep. This meant the starter 
solenoid had to be below this very low floor area. With the new hot air 
heater, they ran ductwork behind and under the rear seat. This meant the 
package area was much shallower, so there was room to mount the starter 
solenoid on top of the starter, getting it out of the way of the left 
u-joint/axle.

Frank DuVal

On 4/27/2014 3:48 PM, judynrandy at comcast.net wrote:
> A little while back I sent an e-mail requesting help for a weird electrical problem.  After installing a Spyder dash in my '60, when I hooked up the
> neg cable to the battery, the temp/press and gen/fan lights came on, with the key off.  In the midst of this dilemma, an old friend stopped by.  He
> just happened to be a 'sparky' from his Navy days.   [ That's electricians' mate for all you landlubbers   ( : ]    The first words out of his mouth were " you
> have a short circuit."  But where?  We worked all day checking things, pulling fuses, etc. and found nothing.  He told me the only thing left was to backtrack
> and take everything back apart and double check anything I had worked on.  He told me as he left, "It's probably something stupid.  Don't worry-you'll
> find it."  The next day I did just that.   Disassembled and double checked and still didn't come up with anything.  Then, as I poured over the wiring
> diagrams yet again, I noticed something we hadn't checked.  I noticed the starter solenoid was in the gen/fan and temp/press circuit that was causing
> the problem.  I headed under the car with a test light to check and see whether the 'run' terminal was hot or not.  Could the starter solenoid be the culprit?
> I looked into the wheelwell at the connections.  Everything looked normal.  Once under the car, I proceeded to hook up the test light.
> I then looked up..................and saw IT.  It seems that what was causing all of this hate and discontent was, quite simply, the battery cable end being tilted
> just enough to the side to touch the "run" terminal nut on the solenoid!!!!!!!
> Further clarification (for those who didn't know this) is that the '60 starter wiring is hooked up from under the car.  The starter is mounted upsidedown.
> Also, this was NOT an original gm battery cable.  A generic aftermarket one.  The terminal had an oblong shape to it and really didn't fit that well on a
> '60 starter.  All it took to fix it was to bend the end of the cable to a 45 degree angle and CAREFULLY re-attach it.  Now I see why the factory changed
> the starter setup and wiring after '60!!!!!!!!
>    
> Randy (Cap'n) Hook
> Hopewell, PA
> '60 700 4dr -'64' 110/4spd